How bad and widespread are California cities' fiscal problems?
"Virtually ubiquitous and massive,'' says Rod Kiewiet, professor of political science at California Institute of Technology.
In April, Stockton became the fourth California city — and the nation's largest — to go into bankruptcy protection since the recession began five years ago. The move by the Central Valley city to reorganize its wrecked finances under court protection has triggered a guessing game over which hard-pressed cities might be next.
Despite signs of economic recovery, many parts of the nation's most populous state are feeling a hangover from the collapse of housing prices, prolonged high unemployment and resulting declines in revenue. They are confronting soaring demands for spending on public workers' pensions and retiree health care while slashing services, rolling back pay and laying off cops, firefighters and other workers.
"There's a huge amount of California that's in extreme distress,'' says Joel Kotkin, a professor of urban development at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., a frequent critic of California fiscal policies.CLICK ON the chart below to open the interactive version:
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